POCATELLO, ID – 72-year-old Bruce Hauber of American Falls was sentenced to five years of probation for federal program theft after embezzling over $129,000 from a federally funded housing authority, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Idaho.
Court records state that Hauber served as Executive Director of the American Falls Housing Authority (AFHA) from 2019 to 2023. During that time, he was responsible for paying bills, collecting rent, purchasing supplies, and managing the agency’s finances.
Beginning in the spring of 2019, Hauber used AFHA credit cards to pay for unauthorized personal expenses, including meals, airfare, home utilities, medical costs, and various retail purchases. In total, he embezzled $129,022.38. To conceal the theft, he reportedly wrote fictitious checks to vendors and logged them into AFHA’s internal accounting system.
In addition to probation, Chief U.S. District Judge David C. Nye ordered Hauber to pay $79,022.38 in restitution and sentenced him to eight months of home detention with location monitoring.
Acting U.S. Attorney Justin Whatcott stated that the office remains committed to investigating and prosecuting public fund theft cases. Special Agent in Charge Machelle Jindra with the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of Inspector General described the theft as especially damaging to a small community like American Falls, with limited housing resources.
The investigation was conducted by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, and the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Sean Mazorol and Jack Haycock.
